For more than 30 years, Dave Clawson was a fixture of Drexel basketball.
Clawson, a 1975 Drexel grad, hardly ever missed a home game, whether he was in the student section, where he would use a slide whistle to distract opponents shooting free throws, or behind the scorers table as the men’s and women’s official timekeeper.
Clawson, 70, died after a long illness on Nov. 20, 2022. Now, his legacy of commitment, kindness, and love for the Dragons will be present at the Daskalakis Athletic Center forever. During Drexel’s win against College of Charleston Saturday, the athletic department dedicated the scorers table in Clawson’s memory.
Clawson was inducted into the Drexel Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017 as the winner of the Athletics Director Legacy Award. His wife, Kathy, said the induction “meant the world to him. And so did Drexel.”
Sean Joyce, Drexel’s assistant athletics director, worked with Clawson for about 20 years. He remembers Clawson for his work ethic and consistency. Those who knew him best describe Clawson as the “ultimate Drexel guy,” a sentiment echoed by Drexel women’s basketball coach Amy Mallon.
“Dave was truly a Dragon,” Mallon said. “He witnessed so many firsts for our program: CAA championships, NCAA bids, and one of the most historic moments in the history of our program, the 2013 WNIT championship, which was won on our home court — Dave’s home court.
“We have Dave and Kathy Clawson etched into our program’s history as a picture [from] that WNIT championship, hanging in our office on display for all to see. And the very center of the picture is Dave at the table with Kathy behind him in the stands, both Dragons for life.”
Another seminal moment in Drexel basketball history found Clawson celebrating one of Drexel’s NCAA tournament appearances during the Malik Rose era (1992-96). Kathy Clawson recalls a time “[Rose] had the net over his head. He was wearing it like a necklace, and he gave Dave a hug so hard [that] he thought he was going to break a rib.”
Kerri DiBlasio, Drexel’s director of development for major gifts, worked directly with Clawson’s wife on this. From his time in Drexel’s athletic department, DiBlasio got to know Clawson. Now, working with his wife to put together this dedication, DiBlasio said it was “one of my most memorable and favorite gifts that I’ve worked on since I’ve been at Drexel, just because it’s honoring a man that’s done so much for Drexel.”
» READ MORE: Drexel’s basketball community remembers Dave Clawson
In searching for ways to honor her late husband, Kathy Clawson kept coming back to one thing: naming the scorer’s table after him.
“I can’t say enough good things about Kathy,” DiBlasio said. “She’s just the nicest woman, and you hear about the love that [Dave and Kathy] had together, and the passion they had for Drexel University.”
For Kathy Clawson, the dedication of the scorers table and ceremony during the game were just about the most fitting tribute one could’ve drawn up for her beloved, late husband.
“I never saw myself doing this, but it feels right,” she said. “I did not have a celebration of life for Dave. This is his celebration of life because Drexel basketball was it.”